The first 30 days at home with your new kitten

Preparing for your kitten’s arrival

Before your kitten arrives home there are a few important milestones to tick off the list. Read our article “New kitten essentials checklist” that takes you through preparing your home before your kitten arrives, a checklist of kitten essentials you will need and a list of important contacts to create.

Bringing your kitten home

The day you have been looking forward to has finally arrived! What an exciting day. Picking up your kitten will generally involve travelling from the shelter or local breeder and back home so can often include a long ride in the car. It is the perfect opportunity to start training your kitten for car travel. Your kitten will also be moving home so you want to make sure they feel safe and secure.

Gather essentials

When it’s time to pick up your kitten you will need to bring their new collar (with bell) and ID tag. You will also need a crate for safe car travel and a blanket to place over the top of their crate to help them feel secure.

To help them feel comfortable bring along a comfort toy and blanket. It’s a good idea to place these near kitten’s mum and litter mates to attract their scent. This can help your kitten feel safe and secure, especially on the ride home and for sleeping at night.

If you can bring along a friend or family member (with a camera) they can help to capture this special moment and also help out on the car ride home. It is also a good idea to bring along some rags, towels and poop bags to clean up any messes along the way.

Collecting your kitten

When you pick-up your kitten make sure you’ve got all the paperwork and ask about their current routine/feeding schedule. Often they can give you a sample of what they are feeding your kitten so you can continue with this food or integrate it with their new food to help them transition. Now is the time to place your comfort toy and blanket near your kitten’s mum and litter mates to attract their scent.

Before putting your kitten in the car put on their collar. Make sure its tight enough to not slip over their head. As a guide you should be able to fit two fingers between their collar and their neck. You should also give them a chance to go to the bathroom before you leave.

Kitten’s first car ride

If possible, place your kitten in the back seat of the car next to a family member or friend. Secure them in their crate. Don’t forget to provide them their blanket and comfort toy. You can also place a blanket over the crate to help them feel more secure. If they meow or cry on the way home calmly reassure them.

The first 24 hours with your new kitten

Day one is very exciting but try not to overwhelm your kitten. Their first 24 hours is all about introductions, firsts and settling your kitten into their new home.

Introductions to new home, pets and family members

Once you are safely home it’s time to gently introduce your kitten to their new environment. Bring them inside in their crate, take the blanket off and open their crate door. Allow them to come out when they are ready and let them safely explore their new home and sniff around. Show them where to find food and water and where to go to the toilet. Talk to your kitten so they get to know the sound of your voice. Start teaching them that its ok for you to touch their paws, look inside their ears, rub their belly, touch their nails and groom them with a soft brush.

Each family member needs time to get to know their new furry addition so make sure everyone gets a chance. Let everyone have short, supervised cuddles, but don’t push your kitten too far. If your kitten looks overwhelmed, make sure they have a safe and comfortable area to go for a break.

If you have existing pets, a good way to introduce them is by scent first. Place your pets in separate rooms and give your kitten a cuddle. Return the cuddle to your existing pet and repeat. You can also allow your kitten to explore the house while your existing pet is secure in their own comfortable room. Then switch pets. Once familiar with each other’s scent you can slowly introduce your kitten visually through a screen door, in their crate, or by holding your pet at a distance. Offer lots of praise and encouragement to them both.

For more detailed information on introducing a new pet into the family click here.

Toilet training begins

Learning how to use a litter tray is an important part of training your new kitten. The litter tray should be placed in a quiet, private location for your kitten to use when they need to go to the toilet. You will need at least two litter trays in your house per cat. Place your kitten in the litter tray when they are most likely to use it such as:

• When you wake up

• Just before bedtime

• After your kitten eats or drinks water

• When you kitten wakes from a nap

It is also important to keep the litter tray clean, as many cats will not use a dirty litter tray. Remove any faeces daily and change the litter regularly. Always wash your hands after cleaning the litter tray. Remember to use positive reinforcement by rewarding your kitten when they use the litter tray. Rewards can include praise, treats, a toy or a pat. Positive reinforcement also means refraining from punishing when they have accidents.

Establish house rules and verbal cues

Use your kitten’s name a lot, especially when encouraging them to go to the toilet and at feeding time. In the same way start to establish some boundaries such as which furniture and rooms are out of bounds. If they go somewhere they are not allowed, let them know the rules with a firm “no”.

Kitten’s first night sleeping

About three hours before bedtime, give your kitten their last meal for the day and plenty of water to drink. About an hour before bedtime, start winding down playtime and offer pats and cuddles instead. Take them to the toilet about 10-15 minutes before bed.  

When they are relaxed, calmly put them in their sleeping area or crate, with their comfort toy and blanket. Other items that can help include filling a hot water bottle with warm (not hot) water and wrapping it in a blanket to put amongst their bedding. You can also hide a ticking clock under or near their bed to mimic mum’s heartbeat. Make sure your kitten has access to their water bowl, food and litter tray near their sleeping area.

The first night can be hard and your kitten will possibly wake you up a few times. If your kitten cries, take them to their litter tray to go to the toilet and put them back to bed without any treats or playtime. Establish a bedtime routine from the start and stick to it. Whilst the first night can be challenging, a routine should help your kitten understand what is expected and normal when the household goes to sleep.

Some people like to have the kitten’s bed in their bedroom where your scent and sound of your breathing can help settle them. Others prefer kitten to be in their own room from the beginning. Whichever you choose, it’s important to establish a specific sleeping place to help your kitten get into the routine. Make sure their bed is a warm, inviting place where they feel safe and secure.

Keep an eye on their health

Young kittens are susceptible to disease and infection, so you'll need to keep a close eye on them. Make sure your kitten's urine and faeces appears normal since it is common for kittens to get infectious diseases or intestinal parasites. 

Inspect them regularly and watch for signs of infection or poor health. Report anything unusual such as vomiting, diarrhoea or a kitten who won't stand or eat to your vet.

Make sure you and all family members thoroughly wash your hands before interacting with your kitten to reduce the risk of them getting sick from any bacteria that may be on your hands.

Register your kitten

Before you bring your kitten home, get in touch with your local council to ask about their regulations regarding areas such as night curfews, compulsory containment within your property, registration, micro chipping and de-sexing. Each council has different laws so it is important to get in touch with the council in your local area for full details.

Brush their teeth for the first time

Starting to brush your kitten’s teeth between the ages of eight and sixteen weeks is vital to the health of their teeth and starting out early will make it much easier for them to get used to this daily activity. That's right, you should be brushing your kitten's teeth every day before bedtime, just like you do your own.

You will need a specially designed toothbrush and toothpaste for pets and it’s important to take it slowly to get them use to brushing. Read our guide for brushing your pet’s teeth.

Establish a grooming routine

Regular grooming is an important part of kitten care, particularly for those with medium to long hair. Starting early, will help them adjust and establish a regular routine early on.

Grooming should always be comfortable for your kitten. Be gentle and reward your kitten for allowing you to groom them. This way they will associate grooming as a positive experience, making it easier for both of you.

Schedule first visit to the vet

One of the first things you should do when you get a new kitten is to find a local vet and book a health check. It’s important to make sure they are in good health and to start their vaccination program. Our vets will not only check your kitten’s general health but will also discuss a preventative healthcare routine including vaccinations, parasite control, micro chipping and de-sexing options. Vaccinations need to be completed in specific, timed intervals in order for them to be effective, so you need to keep these up to date. Our vets can also inform you about early signs of illness to look out for.

It is also a great time to ask about any questions you might have such as nutrition, playtime and obedience.

Stay consistent with training

Stay consistent with your training and be patient. Your kitten will want to please you but it will also make mistakes. Continue to praise it when it does the right thing or deter it from doing the wrong thing by distracting it with a toy.

Continue with kitten’s health routine

Your kitten should have been to the vet at least once for their health check and vaccinations. Depending on the age of your kitten they will need multiple visits to complete their vaccinations, followed by a yearly booster.

Following your first health check, you should have also started your kitten on parasite preventative treatments to prevent and control fleas, ticks, intestinal parasites and heart-worm. You should have also discussed other areas such as spaying or neutering your kitten, microchipping and pet insurance.

Biting and scratching

From the very first day your kitten should be discouraged from scratching your personal items and they need to learn that biting people and other pets is not allowed.

Provide a scratching pole or mat to help prevent your kitten from scratching your furniture. If they do start scratching your furniture, place protective material over the area and ensure a scratching pole or mat is placed nearby to divert their attention.

During playtime teach them to play gently, playtime should end if they scratch hard or bite.

Obedience

Setting ground rules early on can help prevent your kitten from developing unwanted habits. Kittens are naturally very playful which can sometimes lead to misbehaviour. Ensure you kitten has appropriate cat toys to play with to act as a diversion and keep them stimulated. They also instinctively need to scratch things to keep their nails in good condition. Provide a scratching pole or mat to help prevent your kitten from scratching your furniture.

Avoid playing rough with your kitten. If at any time during general play your kitten scratches or bites hard, end playtime to teach them that they don’t receive any attention for undesired behaviours.  It’s important to keep it positive. Positive reinforcement such as small treats, praise or a pat has proven to be vastly more effective than punishment. 

Socialisation

Just like obedience training, proactive socialisation is important for your kitten. The experiences that your kitten has early on can influence and shape their behaviour well into the future.

Socialising your kitten must be done in a safe and positive environment. Consider trying some of these socialisation techniques:

• Pat and play with your kitten frequently

• Introduce your kitten to cat toys and scratching poles or mats

• Allow your kitten to experience different walking surfaces such as tiles, carpet and floor boards.

• Have friends or family over to play with your kitten. Don’t allow your kitten to bite or scratch during play.

• Take your kitten on car rides to get them used to their carrier. Place some comfortable bedding and treats in the carrier to make it an enjoyable place to be.

• Expose your kitten to other cats and kittens. Its important to make sure that the other cats and kittens are friendly, healthy and up to date with their vaccinations.

Ask for help when you need it

Speak to your family, friends or neighbours about getting a little help when you are at work or need a break from your kitten. If those options are available there are boarding kennels that offer day or extended boarding services as well as mobile pet sitting services that you can easily research on-line.

Regular brushing and grooming at home helps to keep your pet’s coat in great condition. If your kitten has medium to long hair you may need the help of a professional groomer. Woofpurnay offer a professional grooming service. Appointments can be made by calling reception on 03 8784 4444.

We strongly recommend that you insure your kitten. Pet insurance is becoming more popular in Australia as it offers peace of mind and covers some or all of the treatment costs if your cat was involved in an accident or suffers a sudden illness. There are several companies that offer pet insurance and we can help you find the one that best suits the needs of you and your pet.